Dodd receives firefighter endorsement

In what might be the most significant moment in his struggling presidential campaign Connecticut Senator Chris Dodd is set to receive the endorsement of the powerful International Association of Fire Fighters tomorrow, the organization's president told the Globe.

"You are looking at a field of strong candidates we all have relationships with," said Harold Schaitberger. "But we go to the core principles of who is the candidate that has truly earned our union support.

"Chris Dodd earned it," he said.

Schaitberger said that not only has Dodd been voting for fire fighters he has been authoring bills.

"He started back in 1976 writing bills for us in the Connecticut legislature," said Schaitberger.

The fire fighter endorsement is one of the most coveted because of their ability to organize and stand by their candidate even when the political waters are rough. In 2003 they were the most visible union sticking by Senator John Kerry when his support in polls were in the single digits and helped him recover to be the nominee.

"Chris Dodd has been under the radar so far and this news could be the very thing that could allow him to pop up and for people to take a second look," said Wayne Lesperance, a political science professor at New England College.